By Johnny Askounis/ info@eurohoops.net
Tallying 43 points, 14 rebounds, five assists, three blocks, and one steal, Giannis Antetokounmpo dominated propelling the Milwaukee Bucks to the 110-99 victory versus the Brooklyn Nets Wednesday night. He was coming off a 44-point effort against the Houston Rockets. The Bucks now stand at 3-0 to start the NBA Regular Season. Thanasis Antetokounmpo, Serge Ibaka, and Sandro Mamukelashvili did not play.
Nets head coach Steve Nash was ejected for the first time in his coaching career, after being tossed only twice in his entire playing career. “I thought Patty [Mills] took a forearm in the throat from Giannis right in front of the ref. I didn’t feel that was fair,” he commented on the play leading to the ejection midway through the third quarter.
Deeper in the packed schedule, the Denver Nuggets prevailed, 110-99, over the winless Los Angeles Lakers. Serbian Nikola Jokic was responsible for 31 points, 13 rebounds, nine assists, and four steals. Checking in for three minutes, Slovenian Vlatko Cancar did not generate a stat. German Dennis Schroder (thumb surgery) was joined by Russell Westbrook (sore left hamstring) on the Lakers’ injury list.
Finnish Lauri Markkanen poured 24 points leading the Utah Jazz to the win, 109-101, versus the Houston Rockets. Italian Simone Fontecchio missed two shots in six minutes. For the Rockets, Spanish Usman Garuba had two points and Serbian Boban Marjanovic did not get on the board in brief outings with Turkish Alperen Sengun (illness) missing a second straight game.
Turkish Cedi Osman recorded 14 points, seven rebounds, and three assists off the bench as the Cleveland Cavaliers beat the Orlando Magic, 103-92. Down to 0-5, the Magic featured Italian Paolo Banchero at 29 points and German Franz Wagner with 22 points. Spanish Ricky Rubio (left knee surgery) and German Moritz Wagner (right foot sprain) were left on respective injury lists.
In his official NBA debut, Serbian Nikola Jovic registered two points, two rebounds, and one steal for the Miami Heat snapping the undefeated streak of the Portland Trail Blazers, 119-98. Turkish Omer Yurtseven (ankle) was out. Bosnian Jusuf Nurkic ended up with seven points and nine rebounds for the Blazers that finished the game without Damian Lillard (right calf strain).
Logging 14 points, French Evan Fournier helped the New York Knicks defeat the Charlotte Hornets, 134-131, in overtime. German Isaiah Hartenstein had eight points but Ukrainian Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk did not play. On the losing end, French Theo Maledon got 15 points behind 6/7 field goals and made four assists.
Croatian Bojan Bogdanovic scored 33 points in a losing effort for the Detroit Pistons, 118-113, to the Atlanta Hawks. Swiss Clint Capela pushed in six points, ten rebounds, and four blocks for the Hawks with Czech Vit Krejci benched and Serbian Bogdan Bogdanovic (right knee) sidelined.
French Rudy Gobert chipped in ten points and nine rebounds in the Minnesota Timberwolves’ win, 134-122, against the San Antonio Spurs. For the visitors, Austrian Jakob Poeltl posted a 12-point, 10-rebound double-double and Polish rookie Jeremy Sochan logged 12 points.
British OG Anunoby finished with 15 points as the Toronto Raptors edged the Philadelphia 76ers, 119-109. Both Spanish Juancho Hernangomez and Turkish Furkan Korkmaz stayed on the bench of their respective sides.
Elsewhere, Montenegrin Nikola Vucevic put in 14 points and Slovenian Goran Dragic added 13 points for the Chicago Bulls in the win, 124-109, over the Indiana Pacers.
Wednesday NBA results:
Cleveland Cavaliers – Orlando Magic 103-92
Detroit Pistons – Atlanta Hawks 113-118
Milwaukee Bucks – Brooklyn Nets 110-99
New York Knicks – Charlotte Hornets 134-131 OT (122-122)
Toronto Raptors – Philadelphia 76ers 119-109
Chicago Bulls – Indiana Pacers 124-109
Minnesota Timberwolves – San Antonio Spurs 134-122
Utah Jazz – Houston Rockets 109-101
Denver Nuggets – Los Angeles Lakers 110-99
Portland Trail Blazers – Miami Heat 98-119
Standings:
Eastern Conference
1. Milwaukee Bucks 3-0
2. Cleveland Cavaliers 3-1
3. New York Knicks 3-1
4. Washington Wizards 3-1
5. Atlanta Hawks 3-1
6. Boston Celtics 3-1
7. Toronto Raptors 3-2
8. Chicago Bulls 3-2
9. Charlotte Hornets 2-2
10. Miami Heat 2-3
11. Brooklyn Nets 1-3
12. Philadelphia 76ers 1-4
13. Indiana Pacers 1-4
14. Detroit Pistons 1-4
15. Orlando Magic 0-5
Western Conference
1. Utah Jazz 4-1
2. Portland Trail Blazers 4-1
3. Phoenix Suns 3-1
4. New Orleans Pelicans 3-1
5. Memphis Grizzlies 3-1
6. Minnesota Timberwolves 3-2
7. San Antonio Spurs 3-2
8. Denver Nuggets 3-2
9. Golden State Warriors 2-2
10. Los Angeles Clippers 2-2
11. Dallas Mavericks 1-2
12. Oklahoma City Thunder 1-3
13. Houston Rockets 1-4
14. Sacramento Kings 0-3
15. Los Angeles Lakers 0-4
Photo Credit: Getty Images